


That's How the Story Goes

by Calix



Category: Rune Factory 4
Genre: Cute, F/M, Sweet, frey/leon - Freeform, freyxleon, leon/frey - Freeform, leonxfrey
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-24
Updated: 2020-08-24
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:02:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26022367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Calix/pseuds/Calix
Summary: The Sechs Empire is defeated. Ventuswill is home again. There is no longer any apocalypse style adventures threatening the people of Selphia. Everything is peaceful… until a certain man with fox ears gets bored.Artwork created by Zweinai
Relationships: Frey/Leon (Rune Factory)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 30
Collections: Rune Factory Big Bang





	1. Author's Note

Hello, everyone! Thank you for reading and I hope that you enjoy this story! I worked very hard on it so that it could be ready for Rune Factory Weeks, a celebration of Rune Factory's 14th anniversary, on Tumblr and AO3. I worked together with 18 other writers and over 20 artists in this big bang so that 20 new COMPLETED rune factory fanfictions as well as 20 art pieces could all be released at once!

I would like to take this moment to thank a few people for putting this all together and allowing me to join in on such a fun experience.

First off, thank you to Zweinai! My artist for this story and the creator of the beautiful cover.

Please check them out here: [Twitter](https://twitter.com/zweinai?lang=ca), [Tumblr](https://zweinai.tumblr.com/)

They deserve all of the love!

Next, I would like to thank tatertotarmy for organizing this event! It was a lot of fun and I hope to do something like this again!


	2. The story begins

The sun was shining. Flowers were blooming. Birds were sailing across the sky singing their joyful songs. The people of Selphia wandered about their own lives in bliss; truly a town of peace. It had been months since Frey had found Ventuswill in Rune Prana and brought the beloved dragon back to her home. It’s been even longer since the Sechs Empire was defeated. The kingdom of Norad was currently working on negotiations with what was left of the Sechs after Ethelberd’s death. No one was in danger. No one needed to be rescued. They were actually living in a wonderful peacetime era. There was nothing wrong.

However, it was on days like this… that Leon’s boredom began to spike.

Sure, it was great that all of his friends were safe and no one was in peril. The constant thought of waiting for the other shoe to drop was finally lifted but it was kind of hard to adjust too. For centuries he was trapped in Leon Karnak as Sarcophagus. It was a constant battle just to stay conscious, let alone relax. Even before that, he was looking for ways to extend Ventuswill’s life. As her best friend, and Dragon Priest, it was up to him to figure these things out. Leon never showed it but it was more than a little bit stressful. So the fact that everything seemed to have screeched to a slow relaxing halt… was an adjustment. He was having trouble finding things to do with himself in his downtime.

Once upon a time, he was a major pillar in the community. People turned to him for advice, asked him for help with events, he tended to Ventuswill as her guard and confidant. He still did some of those things but for the most part, he was a time traveler left to find himself in this modern age. Everyone was more than supportive. If he had a question, all he had to do was ask and everyone would answer to the best of their ability. He was blessed to have awoken to such a welcoming group of individuals. Yet… he still had this itch. This urge to do something. He just didn’t know what.

The fox ears on his head twitched in irritation as he lounged against the fence in the town square. There must be something he could do… but what?

“Forte! Thanks for coming with me to the water ruins. Those goblins were really growing in number out there.” Frey, the twin-tailed princess, said as she walked into the town entrance with the blonde dragon knight by her side.

“It was an honor to fight alongside you but to be fair… this is something that I should be doing in the first place,” Forte replied with a smile. She took off her helmet for a moment to wipe the sweat from her brow. “You’ve done more than enough when it comes to defending Selphia… Sometimes I wonder if we should switch places.”

Frey laughed. “Sorry but I’m already doing that with Arthur. Also, it’s no big deal… who wouldn’t want to do anything to protect their home?” The mint-haired woman shrugged a little bashfully. Even after several months, she still wasn’t used to being treated like a hero.

Leon’s ears perked up with his full attention on the two girls in front of him. It seemed that the gods were being fortunate today by gracing him with an opportunity. One he will not refuse to take. “Good afternoon, ladies,” Leon called out as he made his way over to them. His tail swished behind him playfully. A telltale sign of intended mischief.

Forte immediately stopped her gait and pointed at the dragon priest. “You!”

“Me?” He couldn’t help but smirk at Forte’s reaction to his presence.

“Yes, you! You need to stop giving Kiel such outlandish ideas and bad habits!” She stated with the authority of a captain… which did nothing to intimidate the fox-man in front of her.

Leon chuckled lightly. “Ideas? Habits? Your brother has been out studying Selphia Plains. I haven’t talked to him for a few days.” Kiel… the adorable little brother of Forte. The one who naively believes pretty much everything that came out of his mouth. Which was a fun trait to pick at on any given day. Especially if it riled up his stoic and serious sister. What had the little brother done this time?

“Well then learn to put on a stupid shirt! I caught him trying to emulate you by walking out of the house shirtless this morning!” hissed Forte. Anger burned in her eyes but a small blush had made its way onto her cheeks.

“What? It’s a beautiful sunny day and the sun is good for the skin.” He said while bringing his peacock fan up to him face to hide everything but his eyes. His cool exterior almost cracked when he heard that. “I’ll have you know I never said anything to him about not wearing a shirt. Maybe he wanted to get a tan?”

Forte’s eyes narrowed as the blush on her face grew. She tried to hide the fact that she had glanced a couple of times at Leon’s bare chest but the perceptive man saw it. His smirk returning anew behind his fan. “W-well… stop influencing my brother!” With that said, the blonde knight stormed off leaving Frey to quietly giggle into her hand and Leon feeling rather smug that he managed to rile her up without having to do anything.

“Didn’t Kiel try to do that a few months ago?” Frey asked.

“That he did. At the start of winter too. But again, I did not tell him about it or ask him too. He just did it.” Leon replied with mirth in his voice. Kiel truly was a gift to the world.

“Well, I mean… I can kind of see it. He really looks up to you.” the princess said with a smile of her own as she watched her friend head off.

Leon sighed. “That he does. It is rather endearing, I have to admit.”

Frey stretched her arms above her head. “So, Leon, did you need something from me?” She asked as her arms dropped back to her sides.

“Hm? And why would you think that?” He replied, his tail swishing behind him again in amusement.

“You did call out to us when we walked in.” She said while giving him a wary eye. The princess had been on the receiving end of his teasing on more than one occasion. This was no exception.

Leon sidled closer to her. His fan still blocking most of his face from her. “Maybe I just wanted to hear the sound of your voice?” He said. His voice was smooth as silk and his expression was unrelenting.

A bright blush spread across Frey’s cheeks as she looked at him with wide eyes. “W-what?” Now it was known among the other girls that the princess had a rather big crush on the final guardian but it also didn’t help that she flustered rather easily. She didn’t really have any experience in these kinds of situations.

“Your voice is rather pretty. Surely it isn’t that odd to have a conversation just to hear it?” Leon replied. He stood next to her with their arms almost touching. The hairs on her arm prickled as she felt how close he was to her.

“I-I uh... I guess not? Are you serious?” Her brain was fizzling as she spoke. Her blush deepening at his close proximity and compliments. What does she say? What does she do? Was he being serious? Was he teasing? She had no way of knowing and it was such a Leon thing to do that it was frustrating!

“Certainly,” Leon said. “You know there was a time when a woman’s voice was the most powerful thing in the world.”

Frey recovered a small bit to look up at him with her reddened cheeks. “Really? I thought the Native Dragons were the most powerful thing in the world?”

“You aren’t wrong about that but… you know what? How about I tell you a story?” the fox man asked while he turned fully to his shorter companion.

“Uh… sure?”

Leon closed his fan so she could see his full face again. “There once was a woman who had a gorgeous voice. It was so gorgeous that when others heard it… they couldn’t hear anything else again. So in fear of friends and family, she refused to speak. Instead, she used gestures or written words to get her message across. To further ensure that no one else is accidentally harmed, she eventually left her home and all she knew to live away in a mystical forest.”

“This is beginning to sound like a children’s story.” the princess said as she fully recovered from her flustered state.

“Shhh… The story isn’t done yet.” Leon shushed her without any hesitation but a smile was on her lips when he did. “She lived there alone for a long time. Since no one was around, she would sing out in the woods. Her words lost to the leaves and branches. There were a few people who would come visit but eventually they stopped and she was forgotten... or so she thought.”

He leaned in close and the Frey’s blush came back in full force. “You see the forest truly was magical. Anything that lived there stayed young forever but how could the woman know that if she never left? Centuries had passed and with it, a legend was born. ‘Enter the forest of your own choice but never hear again if you hear the voice. Trapped within alone in despair only released by one who cares.’”

Frey looked away from Leon and rubbed her arm. “That’s a pretty sad legend. She isolated herself to save those she loves but I bet it made the people she loved sad.”

“I bet it did,” Leon replied and his eyes glazed over for a moment. Flashes of old familiar faces popped up in his mind and it took more willpower than he would want to admit pushing the urge to reminisce down. He instead returned his attention to the mint-haired girl in front of him. A slight blush still graced her cheeks and when he playfully flicked her leg with his tail she startled with a yelp.

Frey’s blush grew slightly from embarrassment. “Are you sure you aren’t telling me some sort of tall tail?” she asked while gesturing to his fox tail in question. Leon couldn’t help but smirk at the bad pun. Her blush deepened even more once she realized just how truly close he had gotten while telling his tale. He flicked his fan back up to cover his lower face.

“You know what? This was fun. I think we should do this tomorrow.” the fox man said. He took a couple steps away and Frey felt she could breathe but was immediately confused.

“Eh? Do what? What were we doing?” She asked but her brain was still slightly frazzled. They hadn’t been doing anything. What was he talking about? What had she missed? “Wait, how does the story end? You just started!”

“See you tomorrow Frey~.” Leon purred out as he walked away. He hummed a delighted tune to himself as he watched the flustered princess collect herself out of the corner of his eye and head back into the castle. No doubt to complain to Ventuswill about his behavior. Words that he may or may not hear about through their mutual friend.

Leon made his way back towards the inn. Teasing Frey was one of his favorite things to do. She always reacted so nicely and took it in stride. He made sure to never push her too far and backed off at the slightest hint of discomfort. As strong as she was she still lacked a lot of social cues that are learned when growing up in a community. The amnesia really hit her hard in that regard.

But today seemed… different. Seeing her reaction had been a lot more fun than normal and it appeased him in a way he hadn’t felt in a long time. Leon chuckled to himself. What was he going to get her with tomorrow… and how was he going to continue that story?


	3. Day 2

Leon hummed to himself, earning lots of wary looks from those he passed by. It wasn’t a rare sight to see him in a good mood but when he seemed extra excited there was normally a reason for it. Everyone gave him a rather respectful distance to ensure that they were not his intended target. Luckily for them, he already had a target in mind and Leon had spent most of the night too excited to sleep. Instead, he was wondering about the story he had begun to tell Frey.

She really seemed to be invested in it and it also seemed to perk her up a bit as she listened. Since he had finished the little bit of work he did around the Inn to help Xiao Pia and her mother, it was just a matter of finding out where the busy princess was at. Frey had so many things to do. It was rather impressive how she managed to get it all done in a day. One minute she could be in Blossom’s store, the next she could be out in the Sechs Empire getting materials. You never knew where she would end up on any given day.

But that was part of the challenge.

The fox man wandered the town idly. Listening for rumors of where Frey had made off to for the day. Which turned out, she was off doing a lot of things today. Some said they saw her with Arthur working on official royal things, others spotted her heading out of town on another adventure. Eventually, the day had made its rotation into the early night with the sun beginning its descent behind the horizon. To say that Leon was a little put off by the turn of events was an understatement but he couldn’t ask her to give up her entire day just to entertain him. So he continued to wander the town aimlessly. Hoping to catch a glimpse of his twin-tailed target.

Fortunately for Leon, the gods seemed to be smiling upon him. Because as he wandered towards the Dragon Lake, a certain mint haired princess was bustling about. She held a determined air about her as she went about cleaning up the shore to the lake. Ores were stacked nicely off to the side as well as piles of trash left behind by travelers. Her fishing pole sat on the shore next to a basket full of fish. A light layer of sweat made her skin gleam in the sun as she went about organizing the last of the debris into piles.

As Frey turned around to grab her fishing rod, she saw Leon as he made his way towards the lake. Her face morphed into a cheery grin while she waved to him. “Hiya, Leon! Lovely weather today isn’t it?” she said.

“That it is. A wonderful day to do some fishing at the lake.” Leon replied as his tail twitched behind him. The excitement he felt earlier returned anew.

“But… you didn’t bring a fishing rod. Do you want to use mine?” She asked as she gestured to the one in question. One that was really well made by the looks of it.

The fox man smiled and shook his head as he replied. “No, I plan on doing a different kind of fishing today.”

His words piqued her interest and he saw it sparkle in her eyes. “What kind of fishing?” Frey asked with the pure innocence of someone who doesn’t have a lot of knowledge about the world they lived in. Oh, how he hoped she would never lose that look.

“They say that if you stand barefoot in the lake and say a certain phrase you’ll be able to catch the king of the lake,” Leon answered while taking his sandals off and he could immediately feel the distrust coming off the girl in waves. When he looked back up at her, a wary expression greeted him but she looked like she didn’t want to completely discount his words.

“Okay… what is the phrase you have to say?”

Leon brought the fan up to his face to hide his smirk. “It’s a big secret! I’ll only tell you if you are serious about catching the kingfish,” he responded while hiking up his pants so that he could begin walking out into the water.

“What? How do I prove to you I’m serious? You’re the one not being serious.” Frey stated. She crossed her arms and stared at Leon, who stood in about 6 inches of water.

He chuckled. “You would prove yourself serious by coming out into the water with me.”

The mint haired princess narrowed her eyes at the man before her. She was skeptical. Oh man, was she skeptical. Yet, it would be just like Leon to be teaching her something important in the guise of something silly. So without a word, she whipped off her boots and made her way over to stand in the water with him. “Okay. Now, what do we say to summon the king?” Frey asked.

“Well, you’ll have to go out farther than this first. You think the king is going to be able to hear us in shallow water?” Leon said and he dropped the fan so that his grin was on full view.

“But you aren’t that far into the lake yourself. Didn’t you come out here to do this different ‘fishing’?” she retorted while crossing her arms. Frey was catching on. Now, where was the fun in that?

Leon chuckled again then gently tugged on his pants that were significantly closer to the water than her skirt was. “Well, normally, I would just take these off but considering there is a lady in the vicinity…” He said, as Frey’s face immediately became a deep shade of red at the implication.

“Alright, alright! I’m going!” Frey called out. She waded through the water until it was about to her skirt and stopped. If she went any further then she would be at the shore’s drop off point. She made sure to not look at him in her current flustered state. This was so ridiculous. Why was she even out here? Why was she going along with this?

“I think that’s good!” the smug fox man responded. “Are you ready to learn the secret phrase?”

“I immediately regret this decision,” Frey said to herself before calling back. “As ready as I’ll ever be!”

Leon took in the scene before him. The sun was setting behind them. Casting a gorgeous array of oranges and yellows across the surface of the lake. The shadows of the trees and fauna were beginning to stretch out and framed perfectly in the center of his vision was Frey. She stood with her back to him with her hair floating softly about in the wind.

Serene.

Serene was the best way to describe what he was looking at.

“Well? Are you going to tell me or not?” Frey called to him and pulled him out of his musings.

“Uh, right! You dive your hands into the water and splash about while chanting ‘Big fish big fish, come out and play! Big fish, big fish don’t go awa-” Leon was cut off as he skillfully dodged a ball of algae that Frey had grabbed and thrown in his direction. “Well, that wasn’t very nice.”

“If you were closer all you would have got was some water to the face!” the princess said as she hurled another glob. “I knew you were teasing me! I knew it!”

Leon dodged out of the way again but through the splashing got the hem of his pants wet. Some sacrifices are needed sometimes though. “Who knows though? With all this ruckus a kingfish just might come out.”

“Yeah, sure and I’m actually a mermaid,” Frey said, wading her way back to shore with more ammunition at the ready. “Did you have your fun? Because if so, then I’m about to have mine.” It was obvious that he had. His tail was swishing back and forth and his fox ears were at attention in her direction. Not to mention the signature smirk on his face.

“Absolutely.” He replied, his eyes on the goop of algae in her hand. “How about this? If I tell you more about that story from yesterday, you won’t throw that last ball of goop at me?”

Frey narrowed her eyes at Leon. She kept her eyes locked with his for about a minute before chucking the goop back into the lake to continue its life. “Fine. We left off at the legend part.” She said, making her way over to him with her legs dripping from the water.

“Oh? So you remembered?”

“Well, I wanna know how the story ends! You cut it off so abruptly yesterday!”

Leon’s smirk turned into a soft smile. It was rather sweet that Frey was invested in something like this. “Okay, okay… let’s see...‘Enter the forest of your own choice but never hear again if you hear the voice. Trapped within alone in despair only released by one who cares.’ right?” When Frey nodded her head he moved to wrap his arm around her shoulder like yesterday and almost missed the blush that returned on her cheeks. “Unknown to the woman in the forest, a terrible tragedy had occurred that had killed off almost all of the people and monsters. Leaving only a handful to try and brave the world.”

“What kind of tragedy could take out almost the entire world?!” Frey exclaimed in surprise. Forgetting the fact that she was so close to Leon by leaning in closer with her eyes filled with wonder and excitement.

The fox man shrugged in response. “It’s never really elaborated upon so no one really knows. It’s all speculation. I, personally, think it was because the divine dragons waged a war on each other and the balance shifted so much it wiped out most of the world’s population.”

“Huh… please continue,” Frey said as she gave him her full attention.

Leon chuckled at her eagerness but obliged. “So one day a traveler who had heard that legend wanted to see if it was true. He looked high and low. Continent to continent in search of this mystical forest and the girl secluded within. It had to exist. It just had too. Years grew by but he was determined until one day… He was about to collapse from exhaustion and give up. When he heard something...” Leon paused for dramatic effect and only continued when Frey poked him. “The traveler couldn’t make out what it was per se but he felt something deep within him… pulling him towards somewhere. It had been the first time that he had felt it so he chose to follow.”

“Eventually, his body gave out and he collapsed outside the entrance to a huge lush forest. It was right in front of him. His goal. The legend. Everything was right there. His will didn’t want to give up but his body couldn’t react anymore. So his vision faded and he fell into despair. Fearing that after all the horrible things that he had gone through and the traveling he endured… he wouldn’t even get to see the girl in the forest.” Leon looked somberly down at Frey. “And then… we will have to continue the rest tomorrow.”

“WHAT?!” the twin-tailed princess cried out as she pressed against Leon and poked his chest repeatedly. “Oh no no no! You can’t just leave it like that! That’s so sad. Tell me the rest!”

He caught her hand and carefully removed her from him with a smirk. “But it’s late Frey and you still have to dry off from the water. I can’t have my favorite target getting sick now, can I?” Leon said suavely leaving the princess with her mouth agape as words wanted to come out but failed. The sun was pretty much gone and the night was beginning to fully set in. If she wanted to get this project finished and home in time for a decent dinner she couldn’t object.

“Okay! But you will tell me the ending tomorrow!” Frey replied before turning on her heels to pick up the piles she had been working on earlier.

Leon sauntered away with a smirk. Happy to have gotten a rise out of her in a different way but no less entertained. “Good night, princess~,” he called back and this time he did miss the flush on her cheeks as she went about her work. “This is too much fun to end so soon.”


	4. The story continues

If Leon thought the previous days were entertaining, well… then today definitely took the cake. It was a gorgeous day in Selphia. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky but it seemed that the hectic lifestyle of Frey was catching up to her. Because every chance she got to try and get more of the story out of him failed.

The first time he saw the twin-tailed princess was when he was in Arthur’s study. Leon was working on a lengthy project to transcribe a book from one of the historical libraries of the capital. It was an interesting book that had been lost to time. Even the best hadn’t been able to translate the poor thing. Which was amazing but also a humbling reminder that eventually everything gets lost to time. Just like himself.. Leon shook his head and rubbed his temple. Now was not the time to go down memory lane. He was working. Those thoughts could wait. Just as he finished transcribing a chapter in a companionable silence with Arthur, who was working on some sort of business transaction, the front door was practically kicked in and revealed none other than Frey.

She held a large heavy looking box in her hands and when the princess saw him working at Arthur’s table she pointed at him and yelled. “There you are!”

“Good morning, Frey. It’s such a lovely day outside, isn’t it?” Leon responded with a smile. He leaned back in his chair and stretched his arms like a cat.

“Yes, yes! Morning! Now I know you’re busy but do you think that-” Frey began to ask before she had to stop so she could catch the box. It had begun teetering once she held it only with one hand. “Wait, lemme ask again-”

“Ah! Morning, Frey! Are those the shipment of turnips that my client was asking for?” Arthur cut in as he looked up from the log at his desk.

Frey’s face flushed in embarrassment. She was so focused on Leon that she hadn’t noticed that Arthur was in the room. “Ah yes! Here you go.” Frey said while turning her attention to the blonde prince. “Though I’m not sure how well these are going to work for making clothes.” She made her way over to his desk and set down the box as gently as she could.

Arthur chuckled. “I agree but my client specializes in making clothes out of unique materials. So I bet it is safe to say that she knows what she is doing.”

“Huh. Well, I hope they work out for her!” Frey said as she turned around to face Leon. “Now do you think that you could tell me-”

Before she could even finish her sentence, the door that connected Porcoline’s restaurant to the office was thrown open by a very distressed Margaret. The blonde elf looked around the room until her eyes landed on the princess. “Frey! I need your help! Porcoline won’t go to get his exam from Dr. Jones. I need help catching him!” she exclaimed. Margaret dashed forward, grabbed Frey by the arm, and then they were out the door. Leaving Arthur and Leon to ponder how Frey was going to attempt such a feat. If Porco was escaping Margaret then he was upping his game by a lot.

The second time Leon ran into Frey was when he was back at the Inn. He was helping Lin Fa with some heavy lifting. She had received a shipment of stones that were supposed to help the springs moderate the temperature better and he had no problem helping her out. She was letting him live there for free. He could help out when Lin Fa or Xiao Pia needed it. Though the latter would get a lot more sass and teasing. She was just fun to mess with… like a little sister. He was leaving the men’s bath after having dropped off some of the smooth rocks in the water when Frey and Margaret wandered in from outside. Both were panting heavily with a look of victory in their eyes. “So? How did catching Porcoline go?” He asked as his tail swished behind him in amusement.

“Oh my, where do I even start!” Margaret said then sighed heavily. “He seems to finally be catching on to what I normally do so we ended up chasing him all around town!”

Frey looked just as exhausted as her friend. “He hid in the general store. Somehow pulled Doug into his shenanigans. Porco got out at the last second then ended up going to my FIELDS!” The princess exclaimed as she threw her hands up in the air. “Who does that? Thankfully, I caught him before he noticed that my trees were bearing fruit. My monsters who worked the fields managed to corner him before he could do too much damage to the rest of the fields…. Though I am missing some fully grown crops…”

“THEN he got out of there but Frey almost caught him since she knew that spot better. We chased him around town again before finally catching him at Dragon Lake. Dylas was there and was able to grab him before he got away again.” Margaret finished. The two definitely looked worn down after all of that running.

“Now he is at the mercy of Jones. It’s for the best.” Frey said with a chuckle. “We came here hoping the warm water could rejuvenate us. But before I go in… do you think that you could tell me more-”

“Oh and I bet it will girls! But before you do, do you think you could help me put these rocks in the girl’s bath? I put in some of the smaller ones but I’m having trouble with the heavier ones.” Lin Fa called out to the trio as she exited the women’s bath. “The baths will be free today if you help like Leon did~.”

The twin-tailed princess let out a defeated sigh. Of course, she was going to help Lin Fa. Then she was going to take a bath and odds are Leon would be somewhere else. She turned out to be right. By the time she finished, the fox was long gone and the rest of the day… things just kept happening. Frey found him fishing in town only to be dragged away by Forte to deal with some beasts outside the gate. Then she found him talking to Ventuswill only to be dragged away by Clorica to help out with something in the castle. The poor princess could not catch a break.

Frey slumped heavily onto a bench in the shopping district. Her chest heaved as she tried to catch her breath while her entire body ached from all of the activities that she had done today. None of it doing anything but getting in the way of her goal to get Leon to tell her more of the story. With the sun beginning its descent, she doubted that she would be able to get him to tell her anything now. “Maybe I could try tomorrow…” she muttered to herself. Hopefully, she wouldn’t be everywhere at once.

“Try what tomorrow?”

Long, soft, blue hair fell into her field of vision as Frey looked up to see Leon standing behind her leaning over with a familiar smirk on his face. Normally, his sudden entrance would have startled her but Frey was far too tired to give the fox man that kind of reaction right now. Instead, she gave him a tired smile as her head fell back to bump his chest so that she could see him better. “Evening, Leon. I would have thought you were getting ready for bed right now.” the princess replied.

The guardian chuckled, “I could say the same to you.” He moved from behind the bench and sat next to her. “But there seemed to be something on your mind today as you kept trying to ask me something. Now that you aren’t going everywhere under the sun, what would that question be?”

Finally.

The gods must have decided to give Frey a break because she finally could ask Leon the question she had been wanting to ask all day. “Could you please tell me the rest of the story?” she asked. Her voice sounded tired even to her.

“Is that all? And here I thought it was something much more important for you to try to ask me all day.” Leon said before he outright laughed when Frey did nothing more than stuck her tongue out at him. Too tired to get riled up by his shenanigans. “Okay, I think I can manage that. Where did we leave off… ah yes! The traveler was about to pass out outside the forest right?”

“Yeah, you are so mean to keep leaving it off at a cliff hanger every day,” Frey said as she nodded to him. Her eyelids were getting heavy just like the rest of her body. She knew that she probably wouldn’t be able to stay awake for much longer but she would endure. She had to know how it ended.

Leon hummed to himself. “Patience, Frey. A good story is worth waiting for. Now let’s see… In despair, the traveler’s vision faded to black. He didn’t know how long he was out but when he awoke… a beautiful sight laid before him.”

“A girl with long hair stood over him. His head in her lap. She had heard his soft cries and brought him into the forest. Compared to the world outside, it was lush, vibrant… stunning. Her mouth was open as if she wanted to say something but nothing came out. Instead, her hands stroked his forehead in concern. However, his consciousness was limited and soon the beautiful image faded to black. Leaving him at the mercy of the girl.”

“The next time he came to, the scenery had once again changed.” Leon continued but took note of Frey’s body language as she slid a little. She was more tired than she was probably going to admit to him. “This time he awoke in a cozy little house. A soft humming guiding his eyes over to the girl who was no doubt the owner. She was cooking something over a fire. Humming while she worked. It was a simple sound but he felt it. The lure… the sound… was enchanting.”

Frey had slumped even further and she shot up straight once she realized that she had been resting her head against Leon’s shoulder. “Sorry, sorry. I’m fine! Please continue.” the princess said as she shook her head in an attempt to rouse herself. This is what she had been waiting all day for. She could stay awake for a little longer. But this was hard. Leon’s voice was soft and it felt nice to listen to him speak like this. Yet, it was luring her to sleep. She had to endure just a little longer.

The fox man smiled softly but continued as requested. “And so she took care of the traveler. Nursing him back to health without saying a word. Instead, she would gesture to what she wanted or attempt to write it out but alas… her written language was long dead and he could not understand. But even with that hurdle, they were able to communicate fairly well.”

“This went on for days that turned into weeks that turned into months. Still, the traveler had yet to hear the voice that was told of legend. Only a soft humming when she worked. There was one thing he did learn in all the time that he was with the girl… was that she was lonely. Though the forest was vast it was also empty. The only thing he could see were these weird transparent creatures that floated about in the sky. They couldn’t talk. He couldn’t touch them, let alone catch them. So for all this time, the girl had been entirely alone…” Leon trailed off. He looked down to see Frey’s head on his shoulder. Eyes closed as the sleep she had tried to fight off finally won. He softly chuckled as he picked her up to take her back to the castle. “Guess I’ll have to finish another day.”


	5. Frey Strikes Back

When Frey awoke the next day to Vishnal urging her to rise, it took the acting princess a second to realize where she was. The last memory she had was of her sitting with Leon on a bench in the shopping district. He was telling her the story he had been telling her over the past few days when… ah… She fell asleep. That was the only good explanation for her lapse of memory. Grumbling to herself, Frey sat up once Vishnal had made his way out of her room and rubbed her eyes wearily. Even though she got a full nights sleep, she still felt exhausted. Then again, she had done a lot more than normal. So it shouldn’t be that surprising that her body still protested getting out of bed.

Regardless, Frey got herself ready for the day and made her way out to her fields. Her thoughts falling back to the snippets of the story she could remember from her tired state last night. It really sounded like the story was winding down. If only she had managed to stay awake a little longer… wait. The princess abruptly stopped with her watering as a bright blush spread across her cheeks. She hadn’t made it home herself meaning… had Leon carried her home last night? Oh no…

At that moment, Frey was glad that she was out in her fields. No one save her monsters would see how red her face was.

“You know what? He was just being nice! Leon wouldn’t leave a sleeping lady alone on a bench at night… yeah, that was probably all it was!” Frey said to herself before clapping her hands together. “Enough! Let’s get these chores done and then I can get the rest of the day going!” With that, the awkward butterflies that were beginning to form in her stomach fluttered away as Frey doubled down on her work.

It wasn’t long before Clorica came into the fields to gather today’s shipment and she waved to the twin-tailed princess with a sleepy smile.” Morning.” the purple-haired girl drawled out with a yawn.

“Morning, Clorica. How’s your day so far?” Frey called out as she finished up weeding her field and making her way over to her friend.

The butler shrugged as she went about gathering up the items and preparing the payment. “Good. It’s a lovely day… How about you? I heard from Volkannon that Leon had to carry you home last night. Are you okay?”

Frey’s cheeks flushed. “Y-yeah, I’m fine. Just wore myself out yesterday. Porcoline really gave Margaret and me a workout. Leon must have found me and didn’t want me to stay out there all night.”

“Hm…That was nice of him,” Clorica said as she stood up and put the haul in a basket for her to carry. “But you’ve been hanging out a lot with Leon as of late. I’ve heard rumors of you two talking late at night for the past few days. Are you sure there isn’t more to it?” The princess’s face grew even redder but Clorica didn’t seem to notice in her sleepy state.

There was no way that Leon liked her like that. The only reason that he was talking to her so much was because of that story he had started telling and her reactions were amusing to him. That was all it was. Companionship and a way to kill time. Yet, despite knowing that fact, it didn’t quell the hope that had begun to blossom in Frey’s heart. “I’m sure,” Frey said while putting on a fake smile. “He’s just been telling me an old story… while trying to mess with me in the process. It’s been three days and he still hasn’t told me the ending.”

Clorica clicked her tongue while turning around. “That sounds like something he would do but it also sounds like fun.” The butler hefted the goods and gave a slight bow to Frey. “Well, I have to take care of your shipment. The proper amount for the products is in the box.” She had to pause to yawn again. “I hope that he will finish the story soon. I hate when a story always ends on a cliffhanger.”

“Y-yeah… me too.” Frey stuttered as she rubbed her arm absently. Clorica was right. Despite the embarrassment, the past few days had been a lot of fun but she wasn’t ready to voice that out loud. Clorica was an amazing butler and a good friend… yet this was Selphia. Secrets had a way of getting spread around town. Even when you told the most tight-lipped of people.

“Have a good day, Frey,” Clorica said as she gave the princess another bow and made her exit. Leaving the twin-tailed girl to ponder the past few days in frustration.

Each time she had interacted with Leon, he had gotten a reaction out of her. She could see it in his clear blue eyes that he relished in her flustered state. He never pushed it too far but Frey had to admit that this was a first. Leon had never teased anyone for three days straight like this. It wasn’t horrible but… it wouldn’t be a bad thing if she got a little bit of revenge… right?

All of the other plans that Frey had for the day were promptly trashed as her eyes gleamed mischievously while she made her way back into her room. She grabbed various materials and set to work on a plan. With all the stuff she made for others, the princess was a pretty crafty person. She could make just about anything if she set her mind to it. Now all she had to do was build it and set it all up before Leon could notice…

It didn’t take Frey long to prepare. About an hour was all she needed to craft the components of her plan. Now all she had to do was wait for Leon to leave his room at the Inn and she would be set to put her plan into motion.

Lin Fa manned the front desk of the Inn as Frey walked in with a smile. She gave the gray-haired woman a friendly greeting and promptly entered the women’s bath. If she was going to go through with her plan then she needed an excuse to be there other than to hear the story. Only Clorica knew about it and she had already confirmed that there were rumors going around town about the two of them.

Frey relaxed in the bath for another good hour. Several times she would wander to the dressing room to see if she could hear Leon talking to Lin Fa or the other way around. When she felt it was safe, Frey made her way out of the bath and then up the stairs to the guestrooms. As the princess got closer to Leon’s room, she pressed her body up against the wall next to it and slowly peered in. The fox man was nowhere to be seen.

Perfect.

Proceeding with caution, Frey made her way into Leon’s room and began to put her plan into motion. She pulled out all of the turnip headgear she made and commenced to hide them around the room. Under the bed, on the windowsill, in every desk drawer, Frey filled up the room with the scary headpieces. While bouncing the last one in her hand, the princess looked around the room. Where would be a good spot for this one…? She twirled around the small room one more time before her eyes settled on the closet.

Bingo!

Frey pulled open the closet door and moved things around on the top so that she could hide her final masterpiece. Once it was hidden, she smirked to herself and went to close the door...

“My, my, a snooping princess? Selphia may be in more trouble than it realized.”

With a startled shriek, Frey jumped away from the closet while tripping over her own feet. As she fell, one of her gloves caught a hook and almost everything that was hanging was pulled out onto the floor… or onto her. The sudden movement destabilized the turnip head that she had hidden so well and it fell out onto her head. Where it balanced and remained as Frey froze in mortification at being caught rifling through Leon’s clothes. It didn’t matter the reasoning. The whole thing looked bad.

Leon paused as he took in the scene before him. He hadn’t been sure why Frey had been messing around in his closet and he may have meant to startle her when he spoke… But now the girl was on the floor… covered in his clothes… and wearing a headpiece that had fallen out that he was pretty sure he didn’t own initially. It was taking all of his willpower to keep a straight face so he quickly brought his fan up to hide the lower half. “Well… I know you are one to get to the root of the problem Frey… but, if you just wanted to know more of the story, all you had to do was ask.”

Frey’s face turned crimson red in embarrassment. She slowly stood up, took off the headpiece, and looked at the mess that was strewn out before her. This was not how this was supposed to have happened. She was supposed to get a rise out of Leon… not, incidentally, the other way around. The princess wanted nothing more than the floor to swallow her up whole as her brain short-circuited and all she could do was stand there in the mess she had created. Unable to move. This was probably the most mortifying moment that she could remember.

The urge to laugh began to dwindle within Leon as he eyed Frey from behind his fan. She stood as still as a statue. Even though this was amusing, the princess seemed to have hit her limit. Leon stepped forward slowly and gently moved her so that she was sitting on his bed. “You sit here while I clean this mess.” He said while kneeling down to grab some clothes.

That seemed to snap her out of her trance. Frey quickly dropped to the floor in an attempt to help. “But I made this mess!” she said while stuttering her words. Just before she managed to grab a shirt, Leon brought a hand up to stop her.

“No, you just sit on the bed. Unless you want to see what is really in my closet.” the fox man replied while he held up an article of underwear that had the princess turning an even darker shade of red than she already was. It was rather impressive.

“Okay.” Frey squeaked and moved back to the bed like she was told. Not wanting to make the situation any worse than it already was.

Leon chuckled softly. “Well, since you made the effort to visit me, why don’t I continue the story a bit more? What’s the last part you remember?” Frey thought about it for a moment before telling him and he caught her up to where he had left off the night before. “So for all this time, the girl had been entirely alone… and she was going to be alone again soon.”

“For when he realized that she was happier with him around, he thought that maybe… she would be even happier if he brought others. So one night, after he was fully recuperated from his previous travels, he wrote a note and left it for the woman to find and left the forest to find others to bring back.” Leon spoke as he worked, putting his closet back together. Even going so far as to put the turnip headgear on the top shelf much to Frey’s surprise. “After having company from being alone for so long, the woman was saddened after she read the note. She didn’t fully understand his language but knew enough to get what the note had meant. For the first time, in months, she let her voice out in the way of a beautiful song. A song that the traveler could hear, even though he was miles away from the forest…” Leon trailed off as he put the last article of clothing back into the closet.

However, the look on Frey’s face was what made him laugh. “What’s wrong?”

“Don’t you dare! Don’t you dare leave it off at a cliffhanger! You just started!” the princess said as she gestured at him. “We’ve been doing this for over a week and it’s not like it’s night time like the previous days! Please tell me more!” Even though Frey was still flustered, she sat firmly on Leon’s bed. Refusing to budge.

Leon laughed at her childish outburst. “Then consider it a punishment for being caught in my closet, hm? Scandalous, princess, scandalous.”

“Fine!” She muttered. There was no way she could argue with that logic. The red on Frey’s face returned anew as she stood up and walked out of the room defeated. “But you better tell me the rest tomorrow!”

“Sure, sure but it’ll have to be later. I’m going to be helping Arthur again.” Leon replied. Once she was out of the room, he looked around at a couple of new additions and chuckled to himself. “Looks like I have a treasure hunt first.”


	6. Worth the Wait

Things were normal when the day started. Leon woke up, got dressed, ate something, teased Xiao Pai, and got the newest assignment from Arthur for him. Everything was normal save when he went to Porcoline’s old office building. Arthur offered to let the fox man use the room but the true prince had to leave for other duties today. Meaning he wasn’t going to be there and thus there wouldn’t be anyone to banter with while Leon worked. That didn’t sound like fun. So instead, Leon took the book back to his room at the Inn and set to work. Only to pause...

It was time.

There was nothing he could do.

After fighting it for so long, he couldn’t do it anymore.

Leon sat at the desk in his room. Eyes glazed over while looking at the ancient text open before him. The book was a new one that Arthur had asked him to translate but it was considered a classic during the time before he became a guardian. He could tell this story in his sleep. He had read it countless times to himself and others. Because of this, all of the reminiscing that he had been trying to crush down the past week would not allow itself to be bottled up this time. It was like he was back in his tower… Leon Karnak. Time was standing still and all of these changes in the modern world were gone.

Scenes flashed behind his eyes. The town he worked for, Ventuswill, the people he left behind… Maria… Tears wanted to crest but Leon refused to let them fall. He didn’t deserve to have the privilege to shed tears after what he had done to that girl. This was probably punishment for all of the fun that he had been having the past week with Frey. A kind of… retribution. A retribution that he dearly deserved if the Princess’s reactions to his presence were anything to go by.

Frey had a crush on him. It was obvious. From the way she was so easily flustered to the fact that most times she had problems being in close proximity with him… the girl had it for him bad… and he seemed to be in the same boat. The past week had only proved to enhance their relationship. All of the teasing and flirting was hitting its peak. One that he wished he could pursue more than anything… if he didn’t have another promise holding him where he was.

Maria.

The girl’s face flashed in his mind and it took all he had to not just cry out her name. She was like his little sister. He loved her as such and all he did was give her pain in return. More than likely years of pain if she had kept to the promise he had made to her. Leon shuddered at the thought and pushed his feelings of Frey down. As far down as he could. She was a happiness that he couldn’t have. Not now. He didn’t deserve to have this amazing woman in his life. One that made him smile just about every day with her antics.

His eyes glanced at the large pile of turnip headgear that he had found the day before. If he hadn't caught her in the act, they would have been quite the creepy surprise. This was the first time she had tried to get him back and it had amused him to no end at the time. Now they just looked like reminders of the fact that he wanted to break his promise. The promise he made to his dear friend so long ago…

It was crushing.

It was hard to breathe.

Why couldn’t he seem to do the right thing? Why did he want to be happy, even though he knew that he couldn’t be?

Leon sat immobile for a long time with the thoughts of guilt and the past swirling around in a self-deprecating spiral in his mind. It was times like this that he wished Dylas, Dolce, or Amber were nearby. They didn’t have as long a distance between this era and theirs but he had caught them in their own reminiscing spirals several times. Leon closed his eyes but that only seemed to make it worse as any outside stimulus was now gone.

People had come up to see him but all they were was background noise. Their voices muffled as if underwater. He had opened his eyes and he was sure he had spoken to them but he could not, for the life of him, recollect what he had said. It wasn’t until the slightly heavy steps of a certain acting princess that he was able to pull out of this dreaded cycle for a small bit. Just to see what she wanted.

“Hey, Leon… You’ve been up here a long time…” Frey said softly as she stood in the doorway of his room. “That book must be really good then?” She was attempting to jest but this was a look that she was not familiar with on Leon. It was as if… his body was here but his spirit wasn’t. Like he was looking at something that she couldn't see, no matter how hard she tried. Sure she had seen it in his eyes as brief glimpses while she went about her day but this was different.

“More than you know. I’m, honestly, surprised that this one doesn’t have some sort of modernly translated version.” Leon replied but it was almost like he was on autopilot. He was responding but not quite all there. “Since that has happened a few times, Arthur asked Kiel to do some research to see if there were others under another title but nothing came up.”

“Huh… well that’s kind of exciting then,” Frey said softly with a smile. She entered the room and looked over Leon’s shoulder to find that the page under his pen was empty.

Leon shifted his gaze so that he was looking at Frey. The haze was still there but he was beginning to feel its pull weaken with her presence. “How so?” he asked.

Frey shrugged absently before pointing to the ancient book in front of him and began to speak. “Because despite the fact that lots of things will eventually be forgotten or lost… some things aren’t. This text is probably hundreds of years old. Yet, it’s still here. Someone found it and took care of it and even though it’s not even in the right time period from when it was made… someone eventually came along and understood it.”

Leon’s eyes widened at the princess’s words and he straightened up so that he could see Frey fully. She simply rested a hand on his shoulder and squeezed reassuringly. Which helped more than he thought it would. Leon focused on the woman next to him. Her presence, her scent, her hand on his shoulder… He took a deep breath as the rest of the haze dissipated. Frey kept looking at the book curiously while keeping her hand where it was.

“You know… maybe it’s time for a break,” Leon said once he felt that he was once again grounded in reality. His bedroom was significantly darker than it was when he first sat down to work. A quick glance out his window confirmed that the dark had turned into night and he had been lost to the past for a very long time.

“Sounds good to me. Oh! I brought you something~” The princess sang as she rummaged through her backpack. She produced a couple of sticks of grilled lamp squid and offered them to the guardian. “I went fishing and got a great catch today! Thought I would share the spoils.”

Gingerly, he accepted the fish and gave her a smile in return. “I guess this is good enough to get back in my good graces. You want to know the end of the story that badly?” He replied.

Frey pulled out her own snack and moved to sit on his bed. “Whatever do you mean? I’m just delivering a favorite dish to a friend.” Leon chuckled as she continued. “But if you want to finish the story then I wouldn’t mind that in the least.”

“Okay, let’s see… where were we…” Leon muttered to himself as he thought about yesterday. “However, the traveler wasn’t gone for long. He traveled to a nearby settlement and found some creatures who looked to be on their last legs. With kindness, he helped them back to where the girl lived and the forest gained new residents… and the girl was happy. She was happy that her friend had returned and that there were new friends to be made. This continued for years. The traveler worked on bringing all living things… no matter how small or big back to the forest for the girl that he had fallen in love with. But it came at a cost…”

“One day, on one of his travels, he didn’t return. The girl wandered the forest hoping that he had entered from a different spot but to no avail. Days turned into weeks and it became apparent that her traveling friend was gone.” Leon’s face became solemn as he spoke. “Now this wasn’t the first time that this had happened. The forest had age altering abilities. That much was true but once you left, that wasn’t the case anymore. Several times some of the monsters or animals left the forest, only to never return again.”

“In despair, the girl began to sing. She sang about her lost friend. Not caring if the creatures and people around her would soon never hear anything else. She sang of her sorrow. She sang of her loss. The girl had lived so long alone and this was the first time that she used her voice for herself.” Leon paused to take a bite of the lamp squid and felt its poison take effect with a joyful shudder. “Hey, this is really good.”

Frey groaned. “Don’t you dare say that you are stopping here. Don’t you dare! You can’t leave it like this. Not again!”

He took another bit and smirked. Oh, he wasn’t going to. Leon was going to keep his promise but that didn’t mean he couldn’t tease a bit. That wouldn’t be like him. “I never said I wouldn’t finish. Compliments to the chef.” Frey blushed at his words but before she could say anything Leon started right back into the story. “After a while, the girl was startled by a voice. Turning towards the sound she saw that it was her friend. But he looked different. His body was see-through like the small creatures that floated about in the forest and he looked significantly older compared to when they first met. For you see, each time the traveler left the forest he had aged. He had aged so much that on the last trip out to gather more of the world to the forest his body had died. And with death, he had become lost. Unable to find the forest again..”

“Until he heard something… a voice. That was so far away but felt so nice to hear… he just had to follow it. Leaving his body behind, the traveler’s spirit followed the sound all the way back to the forest. Where his love sat in despair. But that’s not all… others came as well.” Leon said as he watched Frey stop eating to lean forward on his bed towards him and he couldn’t help the smile on his face. “All of the people, monsters, animals that had died in the outside world soon flooded the forest and it was filled with life! People were finding families again. Monsters were young and spry. They had all been lost, wandering aimlessly in the barren world until something lured them back to the forest.”

“Overjoyed at seeing her friend, even if he looked different, her song changed and time seemed to flow by. They lived like that for a long time until one day… her friend disappeared again. He wasn’t the only one that disappeared. Others disappeared as well and the girl did not know where they went. She was sad but decided to do what she did last time. So she began to sing. She sang for days, months, and years. Other people coming and going but not her dear friend. Because of the forest’s power, her voice never tired. So she continued until one day her friend returned but unlike last time his appearance was different and not because it was also transparent.” Once again, Leon paused to take a bite and finished off the first grilled lamp squid. Frey squirmed impatiently but said nothing since she had brought the food in the first place.

“For the traveler had been reborn and was given a new life to live. It wasn’t until his body passed that he heard his love’s voice again and was lured back to the forest where he could be with her… and it continued. Each time he was reborn, he eventually was lured back to the forest where everything began.”

“The Forest of Beginnings!” Frey exclaimed, cutting him off.

“Yes, indeed. This was an old tale about the Forest of Beginnings.” Leon chuckled at the princess’s excitement. Unfazed that she had stopped him. “From then on, whenever he would leave, the girl would sing and the cycle would begin anew and that, dear Frey, is the story of how a woman’s voice is the most powerful thing in the world.”

“I would say so if it was able to lure everyone back like that…” Frey replied. “That was a good story. You were right. It was worth the wait.” Leon hummed in agreement and Frey practically jumped when she looked out the window and saw how dark it had gotten outside. “I would love to sit here and keep talking about this but I need to go! Would you mind if… we did tomorrow…?”

“Of course, Frey. You’ve been a good girl today.” Leon said while cocking his head towards the pile of turnip heads and the princess huffed at him in response.

“Yeah, yeah! Why don’t you think of another story to tell me? See you tomorrow!” she said as she bounded out of his room and left the fox man to his thoughts.

Leon looked at his empty bed and sighed heavily to himself. With one story ending, another was beginning and he was still unsure how he was going to traverse these newfound feelings he had for the princess. “Thus the cycle continues…” He said to himself. Leon stood and made his way over to the bed. He blew out the candle that Frey must have lit when he was still out of it. The room descended into darkness when he did. Exhausted, despite not having done much physically today. Leon laid down and closed his eyes. “but that’s how the story goes… doesn’t it.”


End file.
